Sunday, July 6, 2014

End of the Road...

...or is it just the start?


A month on the global road:
--16,860 miles traveled by air, including a perfect circle around the globe, heading on an east-bound course the entire way (NYC to NYC) 
--Seven flights
--Six countries, three continents
--At least four different time zones (I've lost count)
--Temperatures ranging from 45F to 115F
--Modes of transportation: Airliner, boat, rickshaw, tuck tuck, tram, train, 4x4, car, van, elephant
--Food: vegetarian, seafood, mutton, beef

--Average amount of sleep per night: 4-5 hours
--Number of currencies: Four
--Terrorist attacks while en route to Dehli: two (both by Maoist Rebels aimed at the railroads. Total dead and injured: 100+)
--Top memories: The burning of the dead in Lumbini. The cleansing of the body in Varanasi, the giant orange swastika a holy backdrop. Monsoon rain and winds pummeling our little boat on the upper Ganges, and a human skull lying jaw up on the banks where we anchored and held onto our ratted rooftop tarp for dear life. Swimming downstream in the Ganges, nearly drowning when we hit a stretch of water so deep, the clear-over-gravel-color river turned to blue. The overnight train to Agra, sleeping beside dozens of Indians, young and old. The woman who rushed the train on a stop from Occha to Agra, slipping between the car and the platform, her right leg cut off just below the knee as the train pulled out of the station. Touching, for the first time, an elephant's ear, its smooth almost silky texture taking me by complete surprise. The nervousness of a rhino cooling itself with mud only a few feet away from where I stood in the back of the 4x4 ...

Next stop...who knows.

WWW.VINCENTZANDRI.COM




6 comments:

  1. hey vince,

    that's an extraordinary list. unfortunately through western eyes i can't help but feel alarmed at the sight of any swastika even though i know for hindu culture it's an ancient symbol of well-being.

    and of course this is just the start! here's to the next half-century of adventures!

    :)

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  2. Exactly Elyse. I try and chronicle the world here,warts and all. But the swastika isn't a wart to the Indians. It's sacred. It's shameful what the Nazis did to this ancient symbol. But I publish the photo regardless, even as the father to a Jewish daughter and a Jewish significant other.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I look forward to a non-fiction book of your travels. See you in Poland some time.

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  4. Absolutely Paul. I have relatives in Poland. I think you're my dad!

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